Daniel Cormier is under the impression that Khamzat Chimaev will earn a title shot if he successfully defeats Paulo Costa at UFC 294 in Abu Dhabi.
UFC 294 will take place at the Etihad Arena on October 21st in Yas Island, Abu Dhabi.
The co-headline features a middleweight matchup between Paulo Costs and Khamzat Chimaev. The latter had not fought since last September, when he quickly defeated Kevin Holland at UFC 279. Meanwhile, Costa’s last outing came in August of 2022, where he defeated Luke Rockhold at UFC 278.
UFC commentator Cormier weighed in on the matchup on his Youtube channel and believes a title shot will be warranted for ‘Borz’ if he gets past the Brazilian in October:
“I don’t understand why Khamzat Chimaev has not fought again since he fought Kevin Holland. There’s more to this story than we know. Maybe I’ll do some digging to try and uncover it, but he’s fighting against Paulo Costa.”
Cormier added:
Daniel Cormier on Paulo Costa vs. Khamzat Chimaev
“If he beats Paulo Costa, Khamzat Chimaev will have earned himself a title fight at 185 pounds. And I don’t think anyone can disagree with that. I don’t believe that beating Gilbert Burns, going up, and now beating Paulo Costa doesn’t get you a championship opportunity. It makes you the No. 1 contender between Israel Adesanya and Dricus Du Plessis.”
Reminiscing on Chimaev’s barnburner with Gilbert Burns, he said the following:
“We thought that the Gilbert Burns fight was going to teach a lot about Khamzat, and it did. It taught us that he’s as good as they come. It also taught us that regardless of the level of competition, this young man is going to compete the same way – and he did.”
“He won a very competitive fight against Gilbert Burns, but Gilbert Burns’ willingness to stand in the fire and fight him is what made it a more competitive fight. Now he’s got a bigger guy in Paulo Costa who’s willing to do the same thing.”
Quotes via MMA Junkie
Chimaev was made to work for a unanimous decision victory over Burns at UFC 273.
Do you think Khamzat Chimaev will get a title shot with a win over Paulo Costa? Let us know in the comments!
